Lighting and Heat
Perhaps the most important aspect of bearded dragon care is lighting and heat. There are two key aspects to bearded dragon lighting needs – brightness and heat, and ultraviolet light. Ultraviolet light is necessity for bearded dragons. As desert animals, they need a significant amount of ultraviolet B (“UVB”) light every day. There are many UVB light bulbs on the market, but only a handful are safe and appropriate for bearded dragons. There are a few general principles that you need to follow: * Coil or compact UVB lights are neither sufficient nor safe for bearded dragons. Coil lights tend to have streaking, and “hot” and dark spots. The good UVB rays are also depleted very rapidly in these bulbs. The “hot” spots in coils and compacts have been linked to photokeratoconjunctivitis, a serious eye issue. If allowed to continue, this can cause snow blindness, swelling, and infection. Do not use any brand of coil or compact UVB bulb. * Fluorescent tube UVB is your best option. There are many brands available, but there are only two bulbs suggested by experienced dragon keepers. These are the ReptiSun 10.0 tube UVB and the Arcadia 12% tube UVB. You will need one of these two bulbs. The Arcadia is more readily available in the United Kingdom than it is in the United States. Your tube needs to be changed every 5 to 6 months for optimal UVB output. Both of these bulbs are available online or in pet stores. * Another good option is a mercury vapor bulb (“MVB”). These supply both heat and UVB. They are far more intense than tube fluorescents, but the quality from brand to brand, or even bulb to bulb varies significantly. Due to the extreme intensity and higher heat, you should never use a MVB in a vivarium smaller than 40 gallons. If you do choose to use a MVB, make sure that you follow the indications on the packing for distance. These bulbs typically need to be kept 12 to 18 inches above the basking spot for safety. If you choose a fluorescent tube UVB, there are further concerns with distance and mounting. It is important that there is nothing between the bare bulb and your dragon, including plastic light fixture shielding and glass tank screen tops. You also want the bulb to be mounted 6 to 8 inches above the basking spot. The best way to achieve this is to mount the bulb inside the vivarium. You can either suspend it from underneath the lid of the tank (or attached to the top of a wooden vivarium), or attached to the back wall of the tank using 3M command hooks or strips. You would then purchase an under-cabinet fluorescent light fixture to house the bulb. Make sure than any plastic shielding is removed from the fixture. Basking lights and heating are also extremely important for bearded dragons. Luckily, the type of light bulb used in this instance is not as important. The key is to have a bright white light bulb. This could either be a standard household light bulb or a reptile basking light available at any pet store or online. Make sure that whatever bulb you use for basking is not coated with neodymium, or anything else like “soft white.” You also want to avoid red or blue colored bulbs. All colored and coated bulbs appear dim to bearded dragons, and can lead to eye problems. The bright white light serves for brightness, but it also protects the more sensitive eye tissues from the UVB light by causing the pupils to contract. Temperatures are extremely important to digestion. For a baby bearded dragon, basking temperatures should range from 105°F to 110°F (40°C to 44°C). As your dragon gets older, you will lower this to 100°F to 105°F (38°C to 40°C). A bearded dragon always requires a temperature above 98°F (36.5°C) for proper digestion. Besides the basking spot, you will want to maintain a temperature gradient across the vivarium. The basking spot should be situated at one end of the vivarium, with ambient warm side temperatures around 90°F (32°C) and ambient cool side temperatures between 75°F and 85°F (24°C to 29°C). If the cool side is too cold, you can add a second lower wattage light bulb on that side to raise the temperature. You can also add extra low wattage lighting (including compact fluorescent lights, but not compact/coil UVB) to the cool side for extra brightness. The UVB and basking lights should be on for 12 to 14 hours each day. At night, the vivarium should be completely dark. This means that you do not want to use any type of colored night time reptile bulb, either red or black/purple. These will keep your dragon up, as he can see light in those spectrums. As long as temperatures remain above 65°F (18°C), you do not need any form of night time heating. If temperatures are falling below 65°F (18°C), you will need to get a ceramic heat emitter (“CHE”). This is a ceramic heating element that does not emit any light. This will keep the vivarium warm at night without keeping your dragon awake. Do not use any form of heat pad or electric heat rock for your vivarium. These have been known to malfunction and become extremely hot. Unfortunately, bearded dragons do not sense heat from below very well, and these items have been known to cause serious, and even fatal, burns.